Motor-driven automatic pressure coin-controlled air station



A. A. EWALD.

MOTOR DRIVEN AUTOMATIC PR ESSURE COIN CONTROLLED AIR STATION. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 7. 1021.

1,428,365. Pat-entedSept. 5, 1922,

2 SHEETSSHEET l.

nvewtoz A A fry/440 awe (Ma a A. A. EWALD.

MOTOR DRIVEN AUTOMATICTRESSURE COIN CONTROLLED AIRS-TATION- APPLICATION FILED MAR. 7, I921.

Sept. 5', 1922. 1

' avwewtoz A/I. [mun Patented Sept. 5, 1922.

UNITED STATES v I 1,428,365 PATENT OFFICE madam -1m swam), or onnrrnLnfwisconsmi rvrcron-nnivnivnuronnrrc rnnssnnn coiN-ooNTnoLLEn AmsrATIoN. A

Application filed March 7,

To all whom it m my 0mm My invention relates to improvements in air service stations for usein the inflation ofautomobileand other vehicle tires and has for one of its objects to generallyimprove upon the construction shown by my pending U. S. applications, Serial No. 3357, 175 and Serial No. 418,497, filedFeb. 9, 1920, and October 21, 1920, respectively.

A further object of the inventionis to provide a novel arrangementot parts for preventing the passage of air through the inflation hose until a nickel or other coin is inserted in a slot. 1

A still further object is to provide for operating the station without the necessity of inserting a coin wheneverdesired. I A still further object is to provide an air service station completely contained in a single unit so that it may be quickly andv easily installed wherever desired, without the necessity of making numerous alterations in side-walks, garages, or other old parts in connection with which the device is to be used.

Nith the foregoing andminor objects in view, the invention resides in thc novel construction, combination, andarrangement of parts, hereinafter described and claimed, the descriptive matterbeingsupplemented by the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view, partly in elevation, showing a complete air service station constructedinaccordance with this invention; I 1

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional VlBW partly in elevation, illustrating more particularly the coin-controlled air valve. I

Figure 3 is a sectional view as indicated by the irregular line 3--3 of Fig. 2. u Figure 1 is a verticalsect-ional view taken on the line H of Fig. 2. g

In the drawings above briefly described, the numeral 1 designates a vertically disposed metal casing which is preferably of 1921. Serial No. 4 50,286.

sheet metal wall, with a cast metal bottom ring 2, and with a cast metal top 3, said bottom and top being tied together by stay-.

cylindrical form, being provided with a bolts 4;. Within the casing 1, is a compressed I air tank 5 which is supplied with air through piping 6 from a motor driven air compressor 7 controlled by an automatic pressure actuated switch 8 of well known form. The wiring 9 for supplying current to the motor driven compressor 1s preferably passed I through a vertical pipe 10 within the casing 1, as is also the wiring for an electric light yettto be described.

The compressor 7 is mounted on the top casting 3 ofthe casing 1 and around said compressor, is a casing wall 11 which may have a suitable jdoor (not shown) for giving access to internal parts. I A suitable number of vertical legs 12 are positioned adjacent the wall 11 and rise from the top casting 3 of the casing 1, the lower ends or" said legs being preferably secured in place by threading the stay-bolts 4: into the same. These legs support atop casting 13 which may be secured thereby by screws or the like 1 1, and said casting 13 forms the upper end of a hollow base constituted by thekcasings 11 and 1,

said base serving not only to contain the air tank 5 the compressor 7, and associated.

parts, but acting also to contain the coin controlled valve which normally prevents the use of the station, as will be set forth fullybelow. 1 w

. Rising from the top casting 13 is atubular standard lo-and a suitable head 16 is swivelled or otherwise'mounted' oirtlie upper end o'tsaid standard, said head preferably carry ng aglobe17 in whichis locatedan eleccarries a vertically swinging tubular arm 19 through which a rubber hose 20 passes, and from which said hose depends, the free end of this hose being provided withthe usual or any preferred form of inflation valve 21 which is normally held above the ground by the arm 19. The-hose 20 leads upwardly from a suitableair control valve 22 located trio light 18 for use at night. Thefhead 16 For the purpose of normally raising the arm 19, any suitable counterbalaneing means may be employed, but I have shown a coil spring 24 in the standard 15, the upper end of said spring being connected to the inner end of the arm 19 through the instrumentality of a rod 25, while the lower end of said spring is anchored preferably by booking the same into the lower end of a conduit 26 which rises through the standard 15 and carries the electric light 18, said conduit receiving the current supply wires for said light. Another vertical rod 27 is connected to and depends from the inner end of the arm 19, the lower end of said rod being located in the upper portion of the hollow base and being instrumental in releasing the coin-controlled means which operates to open the normally closed valve 22 This valve, as will be seen from Fig. 1, is located in a pipe line 28 leading from the 001m pressed air tank 5, said line being preferably provided with a suitable pressure gage 29.

"[Vhen the hose 20 is pulled downwardly, with the valve 22 opened, it may be used for inflating tires, and when released, the spring 24 will return the parts to their initial positions, and for the purpose of preventing such parts from moving so rapidly as to be injurious to the entire machine when they are brought to a standstill, I preferably use a dash-pot or other shock absorbing device 30 suitably connected with the arm 19.

The valve 22 above mentioned, is secured by a J-bolt or any other suitable fastener 31 to a vertical supporting plate or bracket 32 which is here shown detachably connected with the casting 18, by means of screws 33, said bracket being provided with a guide sleeve 34 slidably receiving the lower end portion of the rod 27 as clearly shown in Fig. 2, said rod being intrumental in releasing the latch mechanism which is employed for holding said valve 22 in open position when it is once opened through the medium of coin controlled means to be described. In the present showing, the valve 22 is provided with an operating plunger 35 to which is connected a handlei36 in the form of a lever, one end of this lever being fulcrumed at 37 to the body of the valve, while its other end is outwardly curved and positioned at the lower end of a coin chute 38 with which the bracket 32 is provided. Either internal mechanism of the valve 22 or a coiled spring 39 acting on the handle 36 serves to normally close the valve and position the outer end of the lever in the manner shown in Fig. 2. lVhen a nickel or other coin is dropped into the chute 38, it lodges against the end of the handle 36 and is then in the path of a springretracted plunger 40 so that when this plunger is pushed inwardly by hand, the coin will force the handle 86 toward the valve casing, thereby opening the valve to allow air pressure to escape from the tank 5 through the piping 28 and hose 20. The moment the handle 36 is moved in this manner, a latch comes into play to hold said handle against return movement, and it will thus be seen that when the plunger 40 is released, the coin will drop into a suitable receptacle and the valve will be held open to permit the necessary amount of air to be used.

The latch above referred to is preferably in the form of a substantially horizontal lever 41 loosely fulerumed on a bolt or the like 42 carried by the lower portion of the bracket 82, one end of said lever 4-1 being positioned under the guide 34, while the other end of said lever is provided with a cam surface 43 and a shoulder 44 at the inner end thereof, a pin or the like 45 on the handle 36, being normally in contact with the surface 43 as shown in Fig. 2, so that when this handle is moved to the left by acoin, the pin will catch behind the shoulder 44 and hold said handle in a position to retain the valve open. A coil spring 46 is preferably connected with the lever 41 to engage its shoulder 44 with the pin 4.) and to normally position said lever substantially as shown in Fig. 2. WVith the parts in these relative positions, the arm 19 is raised and the rod 27 extends downwardly to the maximum, the lever 41 then passing across said rod as shown in Fig. 2. \Vhen however the hose 20 is pulled downwardly for use, the arm 19'raises the rod 27 to a point above the lever 41 and a suitable spring 47 then forces said lever inwardly toward the bracket 32 so that its inner end is positioned under the guide 34 in position to be struck by the rod 27 when it again moves downwardly, said lever then resting against a suitable guide finger or the like 48 which may well depend. from the guide 34 as shown in Figs. 2 and 4.

After inflation, the hose 20 is released, and the arm 19 returns to its initial position, thereby forcing down on the rod 27 and causing said rod to strike the lever 41 as disclosed. in Fig. 4, with the result that said lever is rocked to release its shoulder 44 from the pin 45, causing the spring 89 or other means provided for the purpose, to automatically close the valve 22 and prevent further passage of air from the tank 5. As the end of lever 41 is moved downwardly by rod 27, said end strikes an inclined cam 49 which is secured to the bracket 32, said cam serving to laterally shift the lever out of the path of rod 27 so that the latter may move downwardly to the maximum without injuring the latch or other parts. As soon as the lever 41 is disengaged from rod 27, the spring 46 returns said lever to the position. shown in Fig. 2 so that it will be again in readiness for operation.

If it is desired, for any reason, to permit operation of the air station without inserting the coin, the valve 22' may belocked in open position by engagin flthe pin 45 with a supplemental shoulder 00 on the upper edge oi the latch lever 41, this being done by hand. \Vhen the lever is used for this purpose, its inner end is positioned at one side of the guide Zhapproximately as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4-, being held in this position against the action of the spring. 46, by a suitable spring keeper 51 which is by preference formed, as an extension of the spring 47.

The operation of the machine, in detail, is as follows: With the parts standing as shown in Figs 1 and 2, a coin is inserted in the chute 38 and is received between the lower end of the handle 36 and the plunger 40 as shown in Fig. 2. An inward push of this plunger now swings the handle 36 inwardly and opens the valve 22, simultaneously engaging the pin at with the shoulder i l to hold said valve in open pos1- tion against the tension of the spring 39. Thus, when the hose 20-is pulled downwardly, it may .beused for inflating tires and.

it willbe' seen that this downward pull will 1 cause arm 19 to shift rod 27 upwardly above the latch lever 41. The parts. remain in this relation as lon 'as the hose is in use, but when this hose is released and arm 19 returns toward its raised positioinrod 27 is shifted downwardly with the result that it strikes lever lland releases the handle 36,

permitting spring 39 to close the valve 22.

Immediately after releasing the handle 86, the lever a1 is disengaged rrom the rod 27 by means of the cam 49 and aid rod then moves downwardly to the necessary extent 1 while the spring l6 rests the. latch lever 41 for future operation.

NVhenever the station is to be used tree o1 charge, pin l5 and shoulder 50 are interengaged so that the valve 22 is held in open position, the innerendo'l lever 41 being then held by the spring keeper 51 as shown in Fig. *1, so that'it is entirely out or the downward path of rod 27 and consequently cannot be tripped torelease the handle 36.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that a very simple, compact and reliable air supply station has been devised. The mere insertion of a coin and pushing of the plunger 40 places the device in condition for use and when the hose 20 is pulled downwardly and the valve 21 applied to a tire valve, the tire may be quickly inflated. The arm 19 may swing horizontally on account of the swivelled mounting of the head 16 and consequently the hose may be advantageously positioned for infiatinganytire of an automobile without moving the latter. VVhenever in the air in the tank lowers beyond a predetermined pressure, the pressure-controlled switch 8 closes the circuit of the passage of air through said hose, coin-[controlled means ior openingsaid valve, a latch co-operable with the valve for holding said valve open, and means for automatically releasing saidlatch when said hose carrying member returns to its initial position after use or. the hose. i

2.An air supply station comprising a normally raised arm carrying an inflation hose and adapted to swing downwardly when said hose is to be used, a valve for normally preventing passage oi air through said hose, coin-controlled means for opening said valve, and means for automatically closing said valve upon return of said arm to raised position. p

3. an air supply station comprising a normally raised arm carrying an inflation hose and adapted to swing downwardly when said hose is to be used,a valve for normally preventing passage oi air through said hose, coin-controlled means for opening said valve, a latch for holding the valve in open position, and means for releasing said latch automatically when said arm returns to its raised position. i

a. An air supply station comprising a hollow standard, a normally raised hose carrystandard and adapted to swing downwardly arm pivoted on the upper end of said llO when the hose is to be used, a rod connected o. .ose carrying arm pivoted on the upper end of said stannard and adapted to swing downwardly when the hose is to be used, a rod connected with said arm and movable vertically by the swinging thereof, a coin controlled valve lor normally preventing passage of air through the aforesaid hose, and latch for holding said valve opened, said latch having a portion co-operable with the aforesaid rod to release-said latch when the aforesaid arm swings upwardly, permitting the valve to close.

6. An air supply station comprising;- a movable hose carrying member, a rod connected with said member, a valve for normally preventing p2 as e oi. air through said hose, coin controlleu means'l or opening the valve, and a latch lever flier holding said valve open, a part oi said latch lever being in the path of said rod to be released thereby when the aforesaid ber eturns to its initial position.

7. ll. structure in claim 0,

as specified gether with meai'is for shifting said lever from engagement with said rod when said lever is released.

8. A. structure as specified in claim 6, to gether with a fixed cam for shifting; said latch lever l'ron'i engagement with said rod when said lever is released.

9. A structure as speciiieiil in claim 6, together with a fixed cam for shifting said latch leverlrom engagement with said red when said lever is released, and spring means tending;- to shilt said lever in a direction opposite to that in which it is moved by said cam.

10. A structure as ciliied in claim. 0', to gether with means 101' holding lid. latch lever in ei'l'ei'ct-ive position and out of? the path of said rod if desired.

11. A structure as specified in claim ($,together with a fixed am for shifting said latch lever out or engagement with said red when salt. lever is released, and a double acting spring device having a tendency to move said latch lever in a directimi opposite to that in which it is moved by id cam, and also active to hold.

said lat-3h lc. in an ellective position out of the path of said rod.

12. An. air supply station LZOIE'iPllI:;ll1, a vertical y elongated hollow base, a ir tank in said base, a tubular stand ard rising from said hollow base, a normally raised arm mounted on said stander r and carrying" an inflation hose, coin-controlled means in said hollow base for controlling the discharge of air from said tank, and communicating; means in said hollow standard between said last named means and said hose.

An air supply station comprising a standard, a swinging arm mounted on said standard, a tire inflating hose depending; from said arm, a hollow base from which said standard rises, a compressed air tank in said base, coin-controlled communicating means betw en said tank and hose, and a pressure-controlled motor driven con'ipressor mounted Within said hollow base on top of said compressed air tank for automatically maintaining a predetern'iined pressure in said tank.

l l. An air supply station comprising a hollow base and a standard risingthere- :lrom, a sellraising arm pivoted to said standard, an inflation hose suspended from said ariin and adapted to be pulled downwardly with said arm for use, an air supply tank for said hose located in said base, a bracket mounted in the upper portion of said base, a valve mounted on said bracket :ior normally preventing discharge of air through said hose, coin-controlled means on said bracket for opening said valve and holding it open, and means for automati- "ally releasing the valve-holding means and closing the valve when the hose is released and the arm returned to ts initial position.

A structure as specified in claim 2,together with means for taking the valve out ol the control of said coin-controlled means and holding it open to furnish free air whenever desired.

16. The combination with an air supply station having an inflation hose, and a coin cont-rolled valve for normally preventing passage of air therethrough; of means for taking the valve out of the control or said coin-controlled means and holding it open to hu'nish free air whenever desired.

17. The combination with an air supply ition having an inflation. hose, and a valve for normally preventing; passage of air therethrough; oil an operating member for said valve, means for guiding a coin against said operating i'nember and thrusting on the coin to actuate said member and open said valve, means for holding the valve in open position anl for permitting closing thereof when the desired amount of air has been used, and means for n'cventing return of said operating member to valve-closing position and operative relation with said coin guiding means, whereby free air may be furnished whenever desired.

In t stimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

ARNO ARTHUR ElVALD. 

